After having released his second full-length album "Evil Mind" in autumn of the last year, Kai Arnold a.k.a. WYNARDTAGE returns with a completely new studio release. Quite a fast kind of work, "Praise The Fallen" holds 12 new tracks mostly based in his known hard and cold Dark Electro style. Why changing too much a successful formula, since "Evil Mind" was and is still fine appreciated by the listeners? "Sterbehilfe", although already originally presented on earlier releases and compilations, has become an evergreen for the German club scene and works still fine. Nevertheless Kai’s new compositions should be easily able to rival it. "Praise The Fallen", "Embraced By Darkness", Cold Massive Blue" or the nearly Hellektro-like "Feel My Silent..." are on-top floor stompers which will keep the masses in motion. The special details are based somewhere in between. "Hurricane Age" is a rather slow-paced piece featuring some unconventional drum patterns, which reminds strong on some classic and noisier-minded SUICIDE COMMANDO-recordings. A conspicuous element in the new WYNARDTAGE-recordings are the placed interruptions in the arrangements to add an ominous and scary sounding sample work. Orchestral-like string sounds work well to underline this dark mood, maybe this can be named the signature for WYNARDTAGE, which saves this project to get reduced and sorted to the swarms of Hellektro-troops? The surprise of this 12 new tracks is for the last one, "When We Are Gone", featuring a female-leaded vocal performance and a different, rather Break-Beat-like drum pattern programming – applause for the try to figure out something different. You’ll get also a special bonus recording placed at song position 33 – it is a remake of the WYNARDTAGE classic "Waste Of Time", originally released on the same-titled debut. The reason for this remake belongs on the fact that the debut is completely unavailable anymore and a lot of listeners have never heard the original. There’s also a available a second CD to accomplish this new studio work, which holds a massive remix-war attack for all the club goers. 14 remix works on 7 tracks of the new album, created and constructed by global scene-players like L’AME IMMORTELLE, X-FUSION, AMDUSCIA, or DAWN OF ASHES – but also from lesser known acts like the new Rupal Records-signing RE:\LEGION, the Mexican act C-LEKKTOR, or Spain’s Harsh EBM output ASSEPTIC ROOM. It’s hard to figure out the best work, I rather and definitely recommend to purchase this limited 2-CD-item to make sure to have the best club food around. There seems to be no end of the rope for WYNARDTAGE and "Praise The Fallen" has enough to offer to save a continuation of the successful story.

SON OF RUST is the Portland-based solo project by Justin Coope, who likes to present us his already second and self-released full-length CD. Surely not at all a bloody greenhorn, since Justin could already open some events mostly in his area for global scene-players like A23, INFORMATION SOCIETY or IRIS. Also a strong friendship on MySpace and several playlist entries speak for his growing rule in the Industrial scene. Musically "Vicious Cycles" offers an electronic-driven outfit being infiltrated with some Rock-like guitar sounds and Justin’s charismatic vocal performance. Synth-/Futurepop with edges, luckily without the plastic-sugar-sweet-kind – so it can be named, too. The given references on DEPECHE MODE, MESH, IRIS, NIN and/or IMPERATIVE REACTION aren’t to far away from topic, I also tend to compare especially Justin’s timbre with the non-effected voice of Gary Zon (DISMANTLED), while Justin is definitively more talented. 12 quality tracks following some fine compositional guide lines without any filler are presented here. However, some favorites like "Welcome To Chaos", "Just Once" or "Another Beautiful Tragedy" have to be named to be the best danceable tunes, while the mid-tempo pieces like "The Highest Cost", "Violator" (what a title...) and the majestically "To Be Free" totally convince and proof Justin’s fine nose for a needed catchy composition. Even if this release is a self-produced one, it has to be praised for its kind, sound and the good artwork printed in a digi-pack. This is a fine and constant good release for the Synth-/Alternative-Pop genre, thumbs up!

I can’t resist to start this review with a warning printed on the backside of this compilation:
"Under the revised Patriot Act, secret Presidential Directives and Orders, and Military Commissions Act of 2006 any person found in possession of this CD can have their mail opened by Order of the President, watched by various U.S. Law "Enforcement" Agencies, and ultimately be charged with a Federal crime. Welcome to the United States. Enjoy your stay."
I’m sure that this warning points out well which politically-inspired content you’ve obviously to expect from the booklet of this compilation CD. Included is a lot of stuff to read, essays and regime-critically stuff on which I can’t judge, since I’m not a US citizen. Only one personal note: that stuff leaves me thinking on...
Chain D.L.K. is a music-related resource, so back to our business: This compilation released by the small Chicago-based label Arable Farmland provides 17 tracks by 11 different artists mostly hailing out of Australia and the USA. Musically the content of this compilation jumps over genre-related boundaries between Dark Electro, Ambient up to Experimental and Ritual tunes. The best known artist here is surely the Australian duo EMPTY, which provides two tracks. Of about all other artists, including the label chief’s own project CRYPTO FACIST, I haven’t heard so far from. PASK is an Australian-based Powernoise/Ambient-artist and opens this comp with an experimental track – this act also has created a remix on EMPTY’s track "Alone" to take part here, which reminds a bit on some classic GRIDLOCK/DISHARMONY works. Also the 3 appearances of CRYPTO FACIST are convincing by offering some eerie moods and foggy voice samples. SEARAD are providing a great electronic-driven Alternative track and have to be named along both EMPTY-tracks to be the highlight here. Two other appearances I like to mention with ROPS56 (a Pop-song with smooth female vocals) and FLOOD OF RAIN (crunchy Metal-like track), because both are representing different music styles. As for a conclusion, this comp works musically well if you’re interested to check out some rather unknown artists, although it is shadowed a bit by the politically message provided by the art.

Track list:

PASK - precursor
SEARAD – remote
MEMBRANE CONSPIRACY - mistrust
SMEA - career politician
METAGNATHOUS - flawed copies
ROPS56 – lament
RDS - heavily redacted
CRYPTO FASCIST - quarantine u.s.a.
MEMBRANE CONSPIRACY - fuel for empire
METAGNATHOUS - neighbors bones
PIN - symbiance
EMPTY – alone (PASK remix)
CRYPTO FASCIST - democracy
METAGNATHOUS - without a word
EMPTY - p.e.r.
CRYPTO FASCIST - controlled cradle
FLOOD OF RAIN - system crash

It's ages I'm hearing the name Aube and I've already happened to give a listen to some songs/relases here and there, but this my first review of his materials. To be honest this not his average relase since it's a rework of Giuseppe Verticchio/Nimh music but thought he’s not the originator of the sounds I can assure his personal touch is firmly strong. Don't worry the compromise is acceptable since even if this cd has been moulded by the hand of Akifum Nakajima, this’ not one of those "sounds like a remix" reworks where it’s not even intelligible the origin of the DNA, infact according to my personal opinion Aube shows his intelligence in developing some Nimh’s original ideas. You end up having both the some "freak" post-ethnic (I’d write New Age if I could not associate the term with "cheap music for cocktail people" as I actually do), ambient sketches diluted in a repetitive but never redundant structure. Aube sounds really close to minimalism, but for the sake of honesty we should say it probably belongs more to oriental "minimal aesthetic" to which minimalists (as well as many other modern learned musicians) paid tribute. A strong psychedelic release where drones, loops and field recordings go out of focus do to reverb and delays layering, but this still quite far from many other experimental post-industrial releases where an overdose of layering creates a concrete fog...if it was a landscape this could be one of those pale misty winter mornings, and if you live in the north (wherever it is) you know what I’m talking about. Aube’s tool are repetitions and he’s probably one of the best loop-dealer around at the moment. For what concerns Nimh, I must say these last couple of releases (I’m referring to this and to the "missing tapes" one) he’s gone more experimental leaving (not so far) his traditional ambient territories and the result is so good, I’m tented to say if you never heard anything from him you could try to start from the bottom.

After having well recognized his debut release "Flight Into The Darkness" in December 2K5, Thorsten Vogler a.k.a. MAY-FLY returns with a new full-length album. "The Face In The Mirror" offers at all 16 tracks, but the title track receives the main attention, because it is featured in 2 (Single Edit and Club Version) different versions, plus it got remixed by 7 different artists (NURZERY RHYMES, RE:\LEGION, :A7IE:, ACYLUM, VIRTUAL VICTIM, STIN SCATZOR and IINSANITY). It is to mention that Kai Arnold of WYNARDTAGE has co-produced and co-composed this track. You’ll get additional 2 new and re-vamped versions of the tracks "Ich Will Tanzen 2007" and "Angelie (Exclusive Version)", both originally available on the debut, plus 5 completely new tracks. MAY-FLY continues globally to present its linear kind of EBM/Dark Electro music, which at times mixes the genre-related boundaries with Goth and/or Synthpop, accomplished with an ominous and distorted sounding vocal performance in both, English and German lyrics. Nothing at all which can be called groundbreaking, but a constant good alternative to the tunes of WYNARDTAGE or the label mate VIRTUAL VICTIM. It’s a pity that the 5 new compositions are standing a bit in the shadow of the high amount of different versions/remixes of the title track, because "Suicide By Train" or "Save Our Souls" prove some potential. This remix war with the concentration on only one tune (best works here: the remixes of ACYLUM and :A7IE: - at least as expected, while the strangest "remix" – at least this work is a remake, nearly a complete new construction of this track - featuring GUITARS got provided by STIN SCATZOR) is maybe a bit of an overkill. However, Dark Electro-addicts can’t do something wrong by purchasing this more than 76 minutes long album.